Wil Ledezma's Preseason Early-Bird Edition (since baseballs my thing), all bias aside

listed in projected order of finish

1) DETROIT- Best lineup (on paper) the game has ever seen since I've even been alive. They have such a potent lineup, that even a minor injury (such as the one Sheff had last year, or that weird 15 day bird flu half the team got) won't be as noticable in the offenses' production. The lineup is diverse with lefties (blacks), righties (whites), and even 1 switch hitter (al bino). The defense is solid, Polanco hasn't made an error since I was in high school, and having Renteria at short will really help sure up the middle infield D. The rotation, 1-5 is about as veteran as their is. Dontrelle won't have to be the Ace here as he was in Florida, and he is coming to a pitchers park. The bullpen is shaky on paper, and rightfully so, but don't forget, just 2 seasons ago, we had the best bullpen ERA in the entire league, so to say that last year is what we will get this year, given the injuries, is a bit premature.

The cieling is high for this team, offensively, they are the New England Patriots of the MLB. Anything short of a deep playoff run is a complete failure.

Projected Win Total: Best Case: 105 wins, Worst Case: 94 wins


2. CLEVELAND- I'm surprised they didn't do much to bolster their roster seeing as how they were 1 win away from reaching the World Series last fall. They lose Kenny Lofton, but other than that they are the exact same team as '07. They added Japanese reliever Masahide Kobayashi, who nobody really knows about. I suppose he could be Hideki Okajima clone, but we'll find out early in the season if thats so. They're bullpen is easily one of the best in the game with guys like Betancourt, Perez, Fultz, Mastny, and the young gun Jensen Lewis. Joe Borowski (Todd Jones clone) will still be the closer, but I'd have to think his leash will be a bit shorter than it was last year. They're rotation is solid, with the seven thousand pound CC Sabathia anchoring the thing. The big thing w/ him is that he is a free agent-to be after '08, and by all indications, he's probably going to cost more than Cleveland is able to pay. So you could have a circumstance where Cleveland could be right in the thick of a playoff hunt yet they may be trying to unload CC just so they can get something of value for him rather than losing him in the offseason and getting nothing. I'm sure Shapiro will try to do all he can to sign him, but from what I've read, it's not looking to good. I just can't see Fausto Carmona duplicating his '07 numbers this year either. He won't sneak up on teams like he did last year, he's not exactly a strike out pitcher, so I think his numbers will fall off just a tad. The lineup is decent. Not that spectacular, but not bad either. Grady Sizemore, as much as I hate him, is still getting better year by year, and if Hafner can avoid a 4 month slump like he had last year, than they could get score some more runs. Asdrubal Cabrera is going to be the starting 2B, and he's going to be a stud, so look out for him. He won the job in September, and also did great in the playoffs. They still have the other fat ass Jhonny Peralta at short, and the biggest douche bag of them all, Casey Blake, at 3rd.
I can't see them matching last years win total, but they will definetly contend for the Wild Card.

Projected Win Total: Best Case: 95 wins, Worst Case: 87 wins


3. CHICAGO- I expect the Sox to have a bounce back year this year. Last year was just brutal. Their pitching got them absolutely nowhere. They traded Jon Garland in the offseason for Orlando Cabrera. They also added Nick Swisher from the A's. And most importantly, they added two solid pieces to their bullpen (which absolutely killed them last year more than anyother team) by adding Octavio Dotel and Scott Linebrink. You could argue that on paper at least, they have one of the top 5 lineups in all of baseball, as Dye, Thome, Konerko, Swisher, and perhaps Josh Fields if he gets a full time starting job, are all capable of hitting 25-30+ HR's, especially in that ballpark which has been the most hitter friendly park in the AL for years now. The big question will be the rotation. Buehrle will be the ACE, Vazquez will be the two, but past that their are some red flags. Jose Contreras was terrible last year, he's gotta get back on track if the Sox have any hope of contending in '08. John Danks and Gavin Floyd round out the rotation, and neither have really proven much in the bigs thus far in their careers. They still got big Bobby Jenks closing out the games, so if the pen can hold the lead before they turn it to him, it should be smooth sailing. Personally, I don't think they have enough starting pitching to contend this year, but at the same time, with their lineup, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if they did.

Projected Win Total: Best Case: 85 wins, Worst Case: 72 wins


4. MINNESOTA- This is the one that was really killing me. I wasn't sure whether or not to put the Twins ahead or behind of the White Sox. On the surface, I thought to myself that since the Twins, who were below .500 last year, lost Torii Hunter, Jason Bartlett, Carlos Silva,and Matt Garza then theirs no way they will come even close to last year's mediocre results. But when you look at the fact that they bring back Francisco Liriano, who was arguably the 2nd most dominant pitcher in the game (behind Johan) in 2006, on top of adding Delmon Young, and a couple solid infield pieces in Mike Lamb, Adam Everett, and Brendan Harris, that maybe this will be one of those classic Twins teams that overachieves and somehow wins 90+ games. But I think their flaws outweigh their upside. They have no center fielders (C-Mo will be starting in CF), they will eventually have to trade the best pitcher in the world (if not before the season than definetly by July 31), and what the hell happened to Michael Cuddyer last year (109 RBI in '06, 81 RBI in '07)??? Not to mention Joe Mauer isn't exactly the "durable" type (think T-Mac). Like all Twins teams, they will have that stint in the season where they look unbeatable, but I don't see it lasting long this season. Who's to say Liriano will be what he was in '06 anyway??? Also, past Liriano and Johan, the rotation consists of Scott Baker, Boof Bonser, and Kevin Slowey, not exactly 3 guys that strike even a bit of fear into opposing hitters. Not this year Minnesota. Take it in strides.

Projected Win Total: Best Case: 84 wins, Worst Case: 74 wins


5. KANSAS CITY- Ah, the Royals. It's always fun going into the cellar. GM Dayton Moore is trying all he can to turn this team into a contender. He added Jose Guillen in the offseason to bolster the power. And even added some mediocre bullpen pieces in Ron Mahay, Yasuhiko Yabuta, and Brett Tomko. But unfortunately, he didn't address that lousy rotation. Sure Gil Meche had a decent season last year, but he still needs some help. Zack Greinke has never turned into the starting pitcher he was supposed to be when he was a 1st round pick 4 years ago. Brian Bannister, at times was great last season, but he's yet to prove he can pitch an entire big league season. The 4 or 5 spots are toss ups and could be allocated to guys like Jorge De La Rosa, Kyle Davies, Luke Hocheavar, Leo Nunez, or even Hideo Nomo who's gonna try and make the squad out of Spring Training. In my opinion, until they get some legit starting pitching, they aren't going to be any better this year. Their lineup is pretty decent, but in the AL, who's isnt? Alex Gordon had a tough rookie year, but I think he will improve. Billy Butler could probably win a batting title someday, and guys like Mark Teahen and David DeJesus are only improving. But their are way too many flaws to assume this team will make significant strides towards being a real threat, and as a result, will likley finish 5th (again) in the division.

Projected Win Total: Best Case: 76, Worst Case: 68



Thoughts?

Nice work. I'm not a big Jones fan, but if he's basically what we've gotten the last two years we should still be in great shape with a much improved lineup and not having to count on the Bazardo's of the world for starts all the time.

Worst case 94 wins? Wow. Expectations are wretchedly high.

IMO the worst case would be 161 wins.

We're on a Pursuit...for Perfection.

Worst case 94 wins? Wow. Expectations are wretchedly high.

I'm not one to be a homer, but I think that with a lineup and payroll like the Tigers have now, expectations have to be high.

Don't we have like the 12th highest payroll? The lineup is mint, but Kenny is a question mark, Bondy is a bit nuts, and Willis had a meh ERA in the NL. Nate is Nate and V is V, so that should be 30 wins, but that leaves a lot to make up for that to be the absolute worst we could do in any conceivable situation. I wouldn't be suprised if that's where Vegas sets our over/under.

I agree with you in the fact I think a lot of people are banking on the pitchers to have an above average year. If they don't, you're right, they could be in a lot of trouble.

But that lineup is nothing short of amazing on paper. The general thought is pitching shouldn't be an issue if their hitters are as good as hoped.

IMO the worst case would be 181 wins.

We're on a Pursuit...for Perfection.

Based on a regular season of 162 games and three playoff series, that's an insanely high expectation!

Are you including spring training?

The fuck is Spring Training?

Just noticed it said 181...woops.

Don't know why I thought baseball was a 182 game season...

Expectations must be high. If we don't reach the ALCS, then we will have underachieved IMO.

WS or bust

My nut says WS or bust.

Ok, ignoring post #12, I have to agree with Glenn.

Yes, we obtained younger players in our biggest deal - but when you literally give up the farm all in one offseason, and on paper national media is discussing the possibility of being one of the best offensive lineups in history, while your starting rotation has guys that within the past 3 years with the following win totals -
Verlander - 18 win season
Rogers - 17 win season (18 4 years ago)
Bonderman - 14 win season
Willis - 22 win season
Robertson - 13 win season

So yeah, when you have THAT, but a handful of components on your team are still productive yet in the last year or two of their careers - you BETTER win it.

Yahoo! Sports is taking an early look at each division in the days leading up to Feb. 14, when pitchers and catchers report to spring training. Today, the American League Central.

It was all going so well for the Cleveland Indians 3½ months ago.

They had won their first division title since 2001 (well ahead of the favored Detroit Tigers), whipped the New York Yankees in the division series (leading, eventually, to Joe Torre moving on), and had the Boston Red Sox down, three games to one, with a game still to be played at The Jake.

They had C.C. Sabathia for Game 5. If that failed, Fausto Carmona for Game 6.

Well, of course, they lost the next three games (uh, 30-5). And, well, that's been about it since.

In the meanwhile, the Tigers rebooted with Miguel Cabrera at third base, Edgar Renteria at shortstop and Dontrelle Willis (for better or worse) in their rotation. The Chicago White Sox went heavy on the bullpen and acquired Orlando Cabrera for shortstop and Nick Swisher for their outfield.

Even an event that should have been beneficial to the Indians – Johan Santana leaving the division for New York – might have caused collateral damage, if it drives Sabathia out of their price range.

But, these Indians persist. Nothing has changed from what was statistically the best starting rotation in the American League. The offense, capable to begin with, has Travis Hafner's down year behind it. A bullpen with lock-down moments (many in October) added Japanese closer Masahide Kobayashi.

The Tigers made all the moves, but they had the ground to cover. The AL Central remains a two-team race.



CHICAGO WHITE SOX

First impression: Just a year ago, GM Kenny Williams was in restock mode, defending the organization against the rising cost of (sometimes mediocre) pitching, advancing on a pitching-thin league with mostly young arms, paddling back from a disappointing third-place finish. In a few weeks' time, he brought in Gavin Floyd, Gio Gonzalez, Nick Masset, John Danks and Jacob Rasner. Today, he's paddling back from fourth place and 90 losses, and in doing so has traded away Gonzalez, Fautino De Los Santos, Jon Garland and an outfielder, Ryan Sweeney. The game can be a moving target, particularly in a division that in two seasons sent the Tigers to the World Series and the Indians to the verge of it. So, Williams readjusted, brought in Orlando Cabrera to play shortstop, Swisher to play center or left, Octavio Dotel and Scott Linebrink to save the bullpen, and still has Joe Crede to move. Not only did the bottom fall out on the pitching staff – the bullpen, in particular – in 2007, but the White Sox scored 175 fewer runs than they did in 2006. The good news is, no matter where Williams decided to upgrade, he wouldn't have been wrong.

Competition: It's thick at second base, where Danny Richar, Juan Uribe, Pablo Ozuna and Alexei Ramirez will vie for the job Tadahito Iguchi held for 2½ seasons. Richar got most of the playing time in the second half last season, but he hit .230, keeping the job open at least through spring. Ramirez, who defected from Cuba and in December signed a four-year, $4.75 million contract, is in play at second base and in center field. His best position could be shortstop, which insures the White Sox against Cabrera becoming a free agent after the season. Swisher could end up in center or left, depending on whether Carlos Quentin or Jerry Owens (or, perhaps, Josh Fields) wins the third outfield spot.

Healing: A lot turns on Joe Crede and his surgically repaired lower back. In Williams' best scenario, Crede is healthy and starts looking in spring like the 30-homer guy he was in 2006. That would allow the White Sox to get value back in a trade (a young arm or two, presumably) with, say, the San Francisco Giants or Los Angeles Dodgers and to put Fields at third base, his most comfortable position.

Next: They're not new names, necessarily, but the White Sox need capable seasons from two of John Danks, Gavin Floyd and Lance Broadway if they are to stay with the Indians and Tigers. The rotation is fine at the top with Mark Buehrle and Javier Vazquez, and Jose Contreras showed signs in August and September he'd gotten most of his confidence and some of his velocity back. The right-handed Broadway, a first-rounder in 2005, looked good in four September appearances, including one start.



CLEVELAND INDIANS

First impression: If the Indians are to become the next small-market club to lose a Cy Young-type left-hander to the economic polarities of the game, then it looks like they'll go down fighting. Unless the Indians tank early, which is unlikely, GM Mark Shapiro apparently has no designs on trading Sabathia, who, at 27, just pitched his best and most durable season. Still, Sabathia's coming free agency could put a clock on the Indians' revival, at least as far as standing among the AL elite. If his arm holds up and he backs up last season's 19 wins with anything like it, Sabathia could approach the $23 million or so average annual value the New York Mets gave Johan Santana. That would amount to about a quarter of the Indians' payroll. So, in the face of the Tigers' offseason reload and plenty of resistance in the stacked AL, the Indians stayed the course that once seemed to have them hours from the World Series. Shapiro did visit the notions of adding another starting pitcher (Dan Haren, who went to the Arizona Diamondbacks instead) and a corner outfielder (Jason Bay, among others), but found the costs detrimental to the course. Presumably, he'll continue to consider upgrades in both corner outfield spots, though a healthy David Dellucci is capable of corner-outfield pop. Shapiro has the likes of Cliff Lee, Andy Marte and Josh Barfield to offer in return.

Competition: Behind Sabathia, Carmona, Jake Westbrook and Paul Byrd, Shapiro and manager Eric Wedge will choose from Aaron Laffey, Jeremy Sowers and Lee for the fifth spot in the rotation. The left-handed Lee won 18 games in 2005 and 14 more in 2006 and threw more than 200 innings in both seasons, but he bottomed out last season, was sent to the minors, returned a middle reliever and wasn't even on the postseason roster. If Byrd lands on Bud Selig's suspended list for a couple weeks, the Indians will have to cover those games, as well. Marte, once a can't-miss prospect, could make the roster as a corner-infield utility player, in part because he's out of options. With Trot Nixon gone, Franklin Gutierrez will be given every opportunity to win the right-field job.

Healing: Dellucci, the left-handed side of the Dellucci-Jason Michaels platoon, blew out his hamstring in June, underwent surgery and didn't return until the final days of the season. He is expected to be healthy for camp.

Next: Laffey, 22 and left-handed, made nine starts for the Indians last season and was OK. He is the slight favorite to be the fifth starter coming out of camp.



DETROIT TIGERS

First impression: Imagine, the Detroit Tigers. From 19 seasons without a division title to the World Series. From 119 losses to a season-ticket waiting list, and notions of bleachers expansion. From a payroll of $55 million five years ago, to more than $130 million. From just another franchise straining to become relevant, to this, massive stars and bigger plans and a manager in his long johns, making certain the baseball doesn't get lost in the occasionally dippy euphoria. Yes, it's true; jacked by the lightning-bolt World Series in 2006 and management's fighting spirit following the disappointing fall-off in 2007, there's hardly a good seat left at Comerica Park. In five years time, the Tigers have taken the worst offense in the game and made it, potentially, the best. There are better pitching staffs out there, but, perhaps, nothing a Granderson-Polanco-Ordonez-Cabrera-Sheffield-Guillen-Renteria lineup can't handle. Generally, the Tigers are leaning on power arms and power bats, the preference everywhere, but more reality in the AL. And while the knee-jerk analysis says this was a win-now winter for Dave Dombrowski and the Tigers (and it was), much of the roster is locked in through 2009 or beyond. So, even by handing over five top-end prospects in trades for Miguel Cabrera, Edgar Renteria and Dontrelle Willis – Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller, Gorkys Hernandez, Jair Jurrjens, et al – the system damage could be minimal.

Competition: Not much. Somewhere before closer Todd Jones and setup man Fernando Rodney, after middle men Jason Grilli and Zach Miner, and around left-handers Tim Byrdak and Bobby Seay, Jim Leyland could use maybe a seventh-inning guy. Francisco Cruceta and Denny Bautista have a shot at that. And Brandon Inge will show up in a lot of drill lines. Moved off third base by the Cabrera trade, Inge will report to Lakeland with pitchers and catchers, and could serve as Pudge Rodriguez's primary backup if Vance Wilson (elbow) isn't ready to start the season. Inge, who could be traded by opening day, could also see time in the middle infield and center field.

Healing: If there is a potential problem area for the Tigers, it is in the bullpen, where Jones and Rodney both struggled in the first half last season. The Tigers will be waiting on Joel Zumaya and his raging fastball. Zumaya missed more than half of last season after tearing a finger tendon. He returned in late August, then injured his shoulder moving boxes during the San Diego wildfires this offseason. He had surgery and is not expected to pitch until mid-season.

Next: The Tigers traded many of their "nexts" for "nows." So, maybe it'll come all the way around again for Jacques Jones, who didn't look like he was having a lot of fun during two seasons in Chicago. He'll be 33 in April, is in a contract year and will hit in a lineup that won't allow pitchers a breath.



KANSAS CITY ROYALS

First impression: You know, there were times last season when if you stood back and tilted your head against the sun and held your left hand over one eye, it looked like the Royals were starting to happen, Dayton Moore's vision right there on the ball field. All right, so last place was theirs for a fourth consecutive season. But, they've crested 60 wins in the last two of them. And they scared the White Sox for a while there. Yes sir, they spent the better part of a month – mid-August to mid-September – in fourth place, were nearly even (21-22) in one-run games, went 10-8 in interleague play (AL vs. NL argument over), and beat the AL West champion Angels five times in seven games. Only a 9-19 September (the 8-18 April didn't help, either) killed a season that otherwise qualified as progress. What we learned was the Gil Meche signing wasn't nearly as ridiculous as many people thought, you didn't need to see Alex Gordon very often to understand he's going to be a complete stud, the Royals stole Brian Bannister from the Mets, and they're going to need a scale to determine which is heavier, Billy Butler's bat or Billy Butler's glove. All that said, all the decent-to-remarkable talent the Royals have been gathering and talking about – David DeJesus, Mark Teahen, Ryan Shealy, Zack Greinke, John Buck, Gordon – needs to produce.

Competition: The Royals go three deep in the rotation with Meche, Bannister and Greinke, and then it gets a little muddy. Kyle Davies, Brett Tomko, Jorge De La Rosa, Brian Lawrence, Luke Hochevar, Luke Hudson, Hideo Nomo and John Bale go in, two come out. Hudson is coming off shoulder surgery, Bale is making the transition to starter, Hochevar is being asked to pitch to the outside corner (The Atlanta Braves Way), and most of the others just weren't very good. The Royals did make plays on Carlos Silva and Hiroki Kuroda, but couldn't make the Meche strategy work two winters in a row.

Healing: The Royals punched up their offense by signing Jose Guillen to a three-year, $36 million deal. He's healthy, but, pending appeal, will start the season on the suspended list for violating the substance-abuse program. He's to serve 15 days. Shealy is coming off a season slowed by a hamstring and foot injuries. He's believed to be recovered and he could be a big part of any steps forward taken by the Royals.

Next: Pick one or all: Gordon, Teahen, Tony Pena, DeJesus, Hochevar. The Royals need them to mature, and fast.



MINNESOTA TWINS

First impression: This isn't going over well in Minnesota, it doesn't seem. First, Torii Hunter. Then, Johan Santana. Followed by contender status in the AL Central. All gone. And, you know, just as people in the Twin Cities were getting over Kent Hrbek's retirement. It stinks. It's unfair. And Twins fans have a right to be discouraged. An obligation, even. Granted, the Twins weren't all that good last season, when Hunter was getting four at-bats a night and Santana was pitching every fifth day. And maybe the Tigers just blew everybody out of the division, or everybody but the Indians. But, what would be wrong with a team that had Hunter in center, Delmon Young in right and Michael Cuddyer in left? Santana followed by Francisco Liriano in the rotation, then by whatever combination of Boof Bonser, Kevin Slowey and Scott Baker? Justin Morneau at first and Joe Mauer at catcher? Joe Nathan at the back end? There's Cy Youngs in there. An MVP in there. A batting champion. Patch up the rest. That hangs in there. With a little luck and a few sturdy elbow ligaments, that contends. The back story now is that GM Bill Smith had almost no leverage while shopping Santana to a handful of teams, including the Yankees, Red Sox, Mariners, Rangers and the team that got him and is now a World Series threat, the Mets. The no-trade clause. The $140 million contract. In another time, the solution is simple: You pay Santana what he wants or he walks. Either way, you play to win in 2008. Or, how about this: You trade him for at least one guy – one – you absolutely know is a top-end big-league player, one who's done it. But, the Twins apparently couldn't afford that, either. So, 2008 isn't going to be what it could have been.

Competition: Here's good news: Philip Humber, the furthest along of the three pitchers the Twins received in the Santana deal, has a reasonable shot to make the Twins rotation out of training camp. That is, if the Twins don't sign Josh Fogg, Kyle Lohse or John Thomson. Mike Lamb probably gets the third-base job over Nick Punto, or minimally against right-handed pitchers in a platoon. Brendan Harris, who came to the Twins in the Delmon Young trade, could fill in at third, short and second, and potentially win an everyday job.

Healing: Liriano is, apparently, good to go. For anyone who has forgotten, the left-hander was maybe the best pitcher in baseball for four months in 2006, the year his teammate, guy named Santana, won the AL Cy Young. In the middle of that season, he experienced some elbow soreness, sat out a start or two, then sat out five weeks, then blew out his elbow in September. He's back from Tommy John surgery and sounding like he's ready to pitch again. He's 24 years old.


Christ, that's long.